Properties of Lavender
by HecateA
Summary: Maybe a simple question wouldn't have become a sermon about Herbology and ancient history, if Hannah had any way to keep her mind straight around the other girl. Oneshot.


**Author's Note: **Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **The following characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and this story derives from her original works, storylines, and world. Please do not sue me, I can barely pay tuition.

**Warnings:** Mentions canon compliant torture (Deathly Hallows, Carrows)

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**Properties of Lavender**

"Hey," Lavender said behind her.

Hannah spun away from the book she'd just borrowed from Seamus and towards Lavender, eyes wide and heart immediately jumping into her throat.

"Hi," she said.

"I'm one of the scavengers heading outside tonight to gather supplies," she said.

Hannah didn't say anything though she did register the words. She also registered Lavender's smell—she always smelled so nice, even if they'd been living in the Room of Requirement for weeks. How was that possible? Hannah only ever smelled musty and worn. But there was Lavender, like a breath of fresh air.

Since Hannah was too busy thinking through this to do anything other than stare, Lavender handed her a list.

"Neville said I should check with you to make sure we didn't need any other healing supplies or…"

"Yes, right, healing, that's me, I do that," Hannah said.

She went down the list quickly, but she and Neville had written it together and they'd done a very thorough job of it. Still, Hannah didn't like to bother the scavengers more than she had to. Since they'd be heading towards Slughorn's reserves anyways, she figured she may as well scrawl a few other things down too. Padma Patil had recently started living in the Room of Requirement full time after a particularly nasty run-in with the Carrows, and she had burns that weren't healing well—holly leaf bandages might help her wounds heal… it couldn't hurt, anyways.

She scrawled down her addendums and handed the list back. When she saw Lavender re-read it, she suddenly regretted how messy she'd made her handwriting—and then regretted thinking that. What was it about the other girl that made her functionality drop down to that of a particularly soggy potato? Mmm, best not answer that—Hannah knew _exactly _what it was. And it wasn't just that she smell nice. Though she did.

"Is this a joke?" Lavender asked, lifting the list back up. Hannah's heart stopped beating dead in her chest.

"Is it too much?" Hannah asked.

"No," Lavender said. "Just… Lavender? You're sending Lavender to get you some lavender?"

"Oh," Hannah said. "Oh, no, it's absolutely not a joke! Lavender's got all these really nice properties. It really helps reduce anxiety and better the quality of sleep, I can use it to help with menstrual cramps with this tea I make, and it makes the tingling more bearable in the anti-infection paste I've been putting on everyone… really, honestly."

"Okay," Lavender said, suddenly looking sheepish. "Sorry, I… I just got teased a lot about my name, when I was a kid. I can get sensitive about it."

"Lavender can help people with sensitive stomachs too!" Hannah blurted. "Sorry, I… I meant to say—I got called Hannah Apricot a lot, as a kid, because I knew about plants, so I know what you mean. But I like Lavender. I mean, your name, not the herb, though my mum used to make this really nice lavender shortbread and, umm, well the Romans used to sell a pound of lavender flowers for 100 denarii a pound. That was basically a month's wages from an average barber."

"Huh," Lavender said. "50 haircuts?"

"Or one month's wages for a farm labourer," Hannah said. "So you're, umm, _it's _worth a lot."

Lavender smiled and tucked one of her curls back behind her ear as she looked at the list again, giving Hannah plenty of time to shoot herself in the head. Perhaps she should lobotomize herself as a mercy, next. Add something long and sharp to her list…

"Fresh or dried?"

"Either or," Hannah said. "I—it's more potent dried, so I use it less quickly…"

"Mmkay," Lavender said. "I'll find some holly too."

"Yeah," Hannah said. "Yeah, I need holly too."

"I'll get it for you," Lavender promised, tucking the list into her shirt. "I'll see you later, Hannah Apricot."

Hannah blushed bright red but couldn't help but smile at how nice the nickname sounded on Lavender's lips, or on how nice those lips looked _period,_ as she watched Lavender and all her nice properties walk away.

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**Stacked with:** Hogwarts; Winter Bingo

**Individual Challenge(s): **Gryffindor MC; Hufflepuff MC; Sapphic Bribery; Badger Sow; Seeds; My Name Now; Golden Times; Old Shoes; Themes & Things A (Secrets); Themes & Things B (Risk); Rian-Russo Inversion; Flags & Ribbons; In a Flash; Yellow Ribbon; Yellow Ribbon Redux

**Word Count:** 680

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_**Winter Bingo **_

**Space (Prompt): **3C (Holly)


End file.
